Slowly moving forward

This week has been a clean, scrape, blast, and paint week.  It is nice to have a rolling frame to get in and out to work on.
I have managed to locate the trackbar bushings as well as the upper rear control arm bushing. Moog K8136 and Moog k8447. I have been told that these will fit with very little modification. I will post the specifications and outcome once they arrive.
I have cleaned and painted the drive shaft. The front control arms are finished and ready for the shelf until bushings arrive. I also have finished a few odds and ends from the front end.


Unfinished Crossbar

Digging through the barn, I have found a front break drum and rear break drum. I will be restoring those later on in the week as extras or to be sold. I also have acquired a 2bbl carb I will be rebuilding and selling for parts money. This came off of the 390 I purchased a few years ago and I forgot it was on a shelf.
This week will be a slow week and I do not expect to get much finished. It will be mostly a cleaning and preparing week. I will decide this week if I am going to use the C6 transmission or the Cruse - o - Matic. Although I know the C6 will be more reliable, I am not sure I can find a new cross member to fit the C6.





Unfinished

Unfinished Drive Shaft



Finished Control Arm - Lower



2BBL Carb to rebuild



Finished Upper and Lower Control Arms



Finished Drive Shaft

Finished Drive Shaft



Almost finished Crossbar

Simple Black

 Doing little by little each night pays off. All of the motor is complete but the intake and heads are not bolted down yet. I took some time to finish off the intake this week. That was the last part to complete before starting the process of getting the motor completely assembled. I still need to paint the motor, but I think it will be easier to bolt on the intake and heads before finishing the paint.
I did spend a lot of time getting the break drums cleaned and painted. Even though I will be putting disc brakes on the front, I will probably assemble the front to make a rolling frame.
There is a slight update on the rear control arm bushings. I was able to get OEM bushings from a local store very cheap. I know I wanted to use poly bushings but some of my fellow restorers have warned against using them on old control arms. I actually got the OEM cheaper than the poly bushings.
The next step will be pressing in the bushings and then trying to find the dreaded rear upper bushings. I have a couple of leads and hopefully it will pan out.
I was looking for the tracking bar bushings today and I had to laugh at O'Reilly Auto Parts. They were the only place that have the bushings available and they wanted $187.99 each!! Honestly, one of the bushings fell out back in 1988 and it was replaced with a rubber garden hose that worked fine for 10 years. I will not go to that extreme. Adjustable tracking bars are available fairly cheap with the bushings included and there are several other options.  Even OReilly shows on their web page that these are the same bushings used on 532 different cars dating up to 1973.  A quick search for the 1973 LTD bushings yielded a pair from J.C. Whitney for 19.98.

Moving along

I was able to get the front control arms cleaned and primed this week. Once the bushings arrive, I will be able to attach the rear to the frame. I also worked on the front suspension. Thanks to the tips from Ford Muscle Forums for removal of the front ball joints and bushings.
Most of the day today was removing the original ball joints on the front.  The uppers were riveted on and I ended up breaking 4 drill bits trying to get them out. I ended up going the messy rout by using my grinder to grind down the rivets. It took a lot of elbow grease but they came off.
I also had a wonderful time getting the front bushings out. After much drilling they eventually came out.
The rear bushings are from a 1999 Camaro. Surprisingly, they fit like a charm. The only modification is to drill out the inner ring to accommodate the bolt.

 

 Although I am going to go with disc brakes on the front, I have decided to clean the front spindles and rebuild them for sale (or possible swap). 

Rear = Done

The rear is cleaned, adjusted, painted, and assembled.  I used my old rims and tires to make it easier to store in the garage until I am ready for them.  I have the upper and lower control arms completed.  As soon as the bushings arrive, I can start assembly for the rear to be attached.  I will leave everything loose until I have it all completed.  If it all goes according to plan, I should have the rear attached early next week.

I am concerned with play in the rear. It is well within tolerance and I have not added fluid yet. It may be that the rear was too tight before or I just didn't notice the play when taking it apart.  There was so much solidified fluid that it probably cushioned any noises.


I am slowly starting to prepare the front control arms for sand blasting. The nooks are difficult to reach and will need cleaning before the priming.

Has it been that long?

Cleaned and ready

Cleaned and ready

It is always amazing to me how time passes. It has been over a year since I have posted and it has been over a year since any SERIOUS work has been done.  I am sorry I have not posted much, but there was not much to post. I HAVE managed to acquire several small parts and I realize I am almost ready to start work on the body.
I can finally give the write a break and start turning it the other way! The rear is complete and will be completely assembled by the end of the week.  I also have completed the rear break assembly and my hope is that the rear will be attached to the frame this next weekend. This will mean that the frame will be easily moved in and out of the garage to start working on the front suspension. Once that is finished, I am rolling and ready for the motor and transmission to be dropped in. 



Almost there

Painted and waiting to cure



Painted and ready to cure